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What does ANA of 1:640 mean?

Hi. This is a new and frightening experience for me. I have epilepsy, and get blood drawn frequently to check the levels of my meds. i was recently told that my red and white cell count was very low. i tested positive for autoimmune disease, and the ANA is 1:640. What does this mean? I have sores on my scalp that have been there since May. Some are reddish purplish and it itches all the time. This has been happening off and on since 2001. I thought it was ezcema or psoriasis. Now, i'm not too sure. Any input?

I really hope this helps you. I only got some of what it meant, but the only thing I've ever been told about ANA test is whether I was negative or not.
Just click on the link that says "What does the test result mean" right under the small section where it says ANA. There is a lst of horizantal tabs underneath, and the link is the third link. If you pull up the page on a
'full screen' then you won't even need to scroll down. If you can't find it, let me know, and I'll copy and paste it for you. Again, I really hope this helps.

The ANA test is the anti-nuclear antibody test. It is used for several diseases, but I will talk to you about its use in Lupus testing.
The antibodies your body makes against its own normal cells and tissues play a large role in lupus. Many of these antibodies are found in a panel, or group, of tests that are ordered at the same time. The test you will hear most about is called the ANA test. This is not a specific test for lupus, however. But, many Lupus patients have a positive ANA

Antinuclear antibodies (ANA) are antibodies that connect, or bind, to the nucleus -- the "command center" -- of the cell. This process damages, and can destroy, the cells. A positive ANA test will confirm a diagnosis of lupus when used in conjunction with other tests, symptoms, and medical history. However, a positive ANA test result does not always mean you have lupus. The ANA can be positive in people with other illnesses, or positive in people with no illness. The ANA can also change from positive to negative, or negative to positive, in the same person. Still, lupus is usually the diagnosis when these antinuclear antibodies are found in your blood.

To perform the ANA (antinuclear antibody) test, a blood sample is drawn from and sent to the lab for testing. Serum from your blood specimen is added to microscope slides which have commerically prepared cells on the slide surface. If your serum contains antinuclear antibodies (ANA), they bind to the cells (specifically the nuclei of the cells) on the slide.

A second antibody, commercially tagged with a fluorescent dye, is added to the mix of your serum and the commercially prepared cells on the slide. The second (fluorescent) antibody attaches to the serum antibodies and cells which have bound together. When viewed under an ultraviolet microscope, antinuclear antibodies appear as fluorescent cells. If fluorescent cells are observed, the ANA (antinuclear antibody) test is considered positive. If fluorescent cells are not observed, the ANA (antinuclear antibody) test is considered negative.

A titer is determined by repeating the positive test with serial dilutions until the test yields a negative result. The last dilution which yields a positive result (flourescence) is the titer which gets reported. The titer shows how many times the technician had to mix fluid from the your blood to get a sample free of ANAs. Thus a titer of 1:640 shows a greater concentration of ANA than 1:320 or 1:160, since it took 640 dilutions of the plasma before ANA was no longer detected. Since each dilution involves doubling the amount of test fluid, the titers do increase rapidly. In fact, the difference between titers of 1:160 and 1:320 is only a single dilution. And it doesn't necessarily represent a major difference in disease activity.

Lower than 1:20 is considered a negative result.
1:80 is considered a "low positive" and more tests should be ordered. 95% of people with 1:80 ANA do not have Lupus.
1:160 is considered positive and if SED rates and Complement tests are positive, Lupus is considered.
1:320 is a definite positive and mean the disease is active.
1:640 is considered very high and tissue damage is imminent.

Your titer of 1:640 means that it took many dilutions and is considered a very high number. Your doctors will probably want to run other tests in order to confirm a specific disorder.

Have I been able to answer your question? Please let me know if you need anything further.

Fatigue is one of the major symptoms of Lupus and can indicate that other issues are occurring. If your doctor runs other tests, he may be able to determine what, exactly, is occurring! I wish you the very best.

I just came across this and was wondering if anyone could further explain what it means to have a very high ANA becuz when I was first seen about a year ago my doctor told me my ANA came back at like 1600 I believe. I dont think she ever gave me paperwork with those test results though. Reading that 640 was very high though makes me think mine was really bad. I dont even know if they've ever done that test again though

In a nutshell, it means that your body is producing anti-nuclear antibodies. If this number is high, your disease is probably pretty active (you are suffering from many symptoms or some severe ones). Further tests are then run to determine what type of damage may have occurred due to the production of ANA.

Happy holidays Susie I have a question?

Originally Posted by Saysusie

The ANA test is the anti-nuclear antibody test. It is used for several diseases, but I will talk to you about its use in Lupus testing.
The antibodies your body makes against its own normal cells and tissues play a large role in lupus. Many of these antibodies are found in a panel, or group, of tests that are ordered at the same time. The test you will hear most about is called the ANA test. This is not a specific test for lupus, however. But, many Lupus patients have a positive ANA

Antinuclear antibodies (ANA) are antibodies that connect, or bind, to the nucleus -- the "command center" -- of the cell. This process damages, and can destroy, the cells. A positive ANA test will confirm a diagnosis of lupus when used in conjunction with other tests, symptoms, and medical history. However, a positive ANA test result does not always mean you have lupus. The ANA can be positive in people with other illnesses, or positive in people with no illness. The ANA can also change from positive to negative, or negative to positive, in the same person. Still, lupus is usually the diagnosis when these antinuclear antibodies are found in your blood.

To perform the ANA (antinuclear antibody) test, a blood sample is drawn from and sent to the lab for testing. Serum from your blood specimen is added to microscope slides which have commerically prepared cells on the slide surface. If your serum contains antinuclear antibodies (ANA), they bind to the cells (specifically the nuclei of the cells) on the slide.

A second antibody, commercially tagged with a fluorescent dye, is added to the mix of your serum and the commercially prepared cells on the slide. The second (fluorescent) antibody attaches to the serum antibodies and cells which have bound together. When viewed under an ultraviolet microscope, antinuclear antibodies appear as fluorescent cells. If fluorescent cells are observed, the ANA (antinuclear antibody) test is considered positive. If fluorescent cells are not observed, the ANA (antinuclear antibody) test is considered negative.

A titer is determined by repeating the positive test with serial dilutions until the test yields a negative result. The last dilution which yields a positive result (flourescence) is the titer which gets reported. The titer shows how many times the technician had to mix fluid from the your blood to get a sample free of ANAs. Thus a titer of 1:640 shows a greater concentration of ANA than 1:320 or 1:160, since it took 640 dilutions of the plasma before ANA was no longer detected. Since each dilution involves doubling the amount of test fluid, the titers do increase rapidly. In fact, the difference between titers of 1:160 and 1:320 is only a single dilution. And it doesn't necessarily represent a major difference in disease activity.

Lower than 1:20 is considered a negative result.
1:80 is considered a "low positive" and more tests should be ordered. 95% of people with 1:80 ANA do not have Lupus.
1:160 is considered positive and if SED rates and Complement tests are positive, Lupus is considered.
1:320 is a definite positive and mean the disease is active.
1:640 is considered very high and tissue damage is imminent.

Your titer of 1:640 means that it took many dilutions and is considered a very high number. Your doctors will probably want to run other tests in order to confirm a specific disorder.

Have I been able to answer your question? Please let me know if you need anything further.

Peace and Blessings
Namaste
Saysusie

I got back my test results today and have a 1:640 positive test score on my ANA test but I don't have any of the symptons that I have seen associated to Lupus....but I do have Hypythyrodism is is possible that the Hypyothyrodism made me test POSITIVE? Thanks you so much in advance and happy holidays to you and your loved ones!